Savannah Horvath and Chelsea Ponce returned to familiar places as the Big West Softball Field Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively.
Horvath Leads CSUN To Series Victory Over Long Beach State
CSUN freshman Savannah Horvath (Las Vegas, Nev./Centennial HS) batted .750 with three extra-base hits and three RBI in a series victory over Long Beach State, earning her Big West Softball Field Player of the Week accolades.
The Matadors recorded their first series win against the 49ers since 2002, and the first in Long Beach State since 2001 as Horvath’s efforts at the plate helped CSUN win two of three in the series.
Horvath recorded two hits in each game to increase her season average to .358. She went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI in the series opener as CSUN won 6-2. She scored twice and hammered her ninth home run of the year in game two. In the rubber contest, Horvath clubbed her 14th double of the season in a 3-1 triumph.
She also played perfect defense at second base during the weekend as CSUN moved to 39-11 overall and 14-1 in Big West play. It was Horvath’s second Field Player of the Week honor this season.
Others nominated: Courtney Rodriguez (Cal State Fullerton); Lauren Lombardi (Long Beach State); Rebecca Faulkner (UC Riverside); Meshalon Moore (UC Santa Barbara); Keiki Carlos (Hawai‘i)
Ponce Spearheads Sweep Of UC Davis
UC Riverside ace Chelsea Ponce (Norwalk, Calif./Cajon HS) tallied her fourth Big West Softball Pitcher of the Week award this season as she twice was the winning hurler in the blue and gold’s UC Davis sweep.
The right-hander posted a 0.95 ERA in three starts, allowing just three runs in 22.0 innings of work while walking eight and striking out 15. She limited the Aggie bats to a .256 batting average.
Ponce did not receive a decision in a marathon game one that lasted 13 innings and resulted in a 1-0 Highlander victory. However, she did throw 12.1 innings and did not allow a run while fanning nine batters.
She yielded just one run in 4.2 innings of work to help the Highlanders post a 5-2 win in game two, and gave up two runs in 5.0 innings as UCR finished off the sweep with a 5-3 triumph. Ponce struck out three in each of her last two starts.
In the process, the Highlanders matched their single-season wins record during conference play with seven. Ponce leads the Big West and ranks sixth in the nation with 26 wins over 228.2 innings of work. She also ranks third in the conference with 170 strikeouts and first with a 1.35 ERA.
UCR captured its first sweep of a conference opponent since 2012 against CSUN.
Others nominated: Cerissa Rivera (Cal State Fullerton); Brianna Elder (CSUN); Ashley Ludlow (UC Santa Barbara)